A self-confessed ‘crazy man’ punched his pregnant girlfriend five times after urging her to take her own life. Ionut-sorin Matei, 35, carried out the 'abhorrent attack' when she was seven months pregnant with their child.
Matei had ‘entrenched cultural views on roles within a couple’ which led to a toxic and abusive relationship with his now ex-partner, Manchester Crown Court heard. He had been in an on-off relationship with the woman since 2020, in which she described him as ‘unpredictable’ and obsessed with the idea of her cheating on him.
He was verbally abusive towards her, calling her names such as ‘w***e’, ‘waste of space’ and ‘s**t mum’, a court heard. Throughout the relationship he attempted to control who she spoke to, not allowing her to speak to neighbours and telling her to block friends on Facebook.
